Stella’s Story

Stella’s Story

Stella up in the air in a heli bubble somewhere over Uluru.

I’m Stella–a short, bossy half a century old Asian woman. I’m Chinese, born and raised in the Philippines, and a grateful immigrant to Australia. In 2003, my husband Yogi and I packed our entire household in Manila and shipped a 20-foot container to Brisbane en route to Cairns, where we started our new Australian life. The old familiar life–all my friends and family, my old driving habits–was left behind in Manila. A new, adventurous chapter in our lives began.

I’m an accidental writer; that’s how I like to think of myself. I was in advertising, producing 30-second TV or radio adverts, then later a documentary producer. Writers were always a part of my creative team–always another person, another friend, but never me. But now the team is just Yogi and myself, and there was no one else to tell our stories. In April 2009, after many years of doing our own Australian expeditions and photo stories for the European nature magazine market, we embarked on a major assignment for WWF, the World Wide Fund for Nature. This was to take photos and blog all throughout our 18-month journey, documenting the Coral Triangle‘s six countries in the Asia Pacific for the conservation network. It was my first attempt at blogging and writing. For more than 18 months, I wrote regularly about all aspects of our expedition. By the end of the assignment, my blogging had tapered off to a virtual standstill. And did I miss it? Hmmmmm… YES!

So here begins a new phase in the Freunds’ life. We will start this new journal, our own dedicated blog called Australia Stories. After 10 years of living in Cairns, we moved to our new home in the Atherton Tablelands. We start this new blog on the first year anniversary of our being Tablelanders, and I have many things to be grateful for. I am grateful to be living in this incredible country, where everyday, I look out of my kitchen window, whether it’s raining or shining, and think, wow, I live here. It’s so beautiful. I am grateful for friends who embrace our being in this country, in this community; who welcome us and generously open their hearts and homes to us! I am grateful for the recognition of the body of work we have amassed in photos and stories, and for being handed a month-long gallery exhibition on a silver platter. I am grateful for being able to assist Yogi teach nature photography to wonderful students from all over Australia and overseas. I am grateful to be learning to garden. Our housewarming gifts have mainly been plants–herbs, flowers, trees–living things! This is the first time in my life I’ve made anything grow! And my plants are growing, indeed. I am grateful for the life of simplicity, for the chance to go back to basic, to buy my fruits from roadside stands, dropping $2 for a bag of avocados or bananas or pumpkins, to be able to cook fresh produce. It’s mind-boggling how fertile the soil is, so that everything is growing! I am grateful for quaint second hand online shops where I can shop for someone else’s old treasures that give us utmost pleasure–our canoe which gives us amazing experiences and photo opportunities, a claw-foot bathtub that adds character to our backyard, a 30-year-old Rainbow vacuum cleaner that cleans my wonderful home. My cup runneth over.

Through this blog, we embark on this new journey to tell you our Australia Stories. We have 10 years of exciting stories and anecdotes to bank on, and our voyage to new discoveries in this big amazing continent continues. Each and every aspect of being in Australia is worth sharing with the world.

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Stella was born in Manila, Philippines in 1965. She studied anthropology but ended up in advertising, producing radio and TV commercials for 7 years. After quitting advertising, she ventured into the freelance world in Manila producing video documentaries for a publishing house, government agencies, non govenmental organisations, and the academe. She moved on to producing books and had a stint at working with foreign production companies visiting Manila. Stella, now based in Cairns, produces photo stories with her husband Jürgen Freund.

Testimonials

“I was inspired to take pictures and to improve my eye for capturing a special moment in nature… The course is so well planned to provide opportunities for that special picture in that special place, and each day we were challenged to apply new techniques to get the shot. Unforgettable and such solid step in my learning experience.”

Chico Birrell – Brisbane, QLD

“An enjoyable and entertaining fun-course of expertly organised subjects and venues, inspired by Yogi’s enthusiasm and generous sharing of his photographic knowledge and experiences. Thanks Yogi, Stella and Tai.”

Annette Corsi – Innisfail, QLD

“Juergen Freund is a master at his craft and he tailored his response carefully to each of the participant’s personal skills. He never became impatient even with questions that to him must have appeared inane. I personally benefited greatly from his instruction. I would also like to emphasise that Stella was also a pillar of strength and she contributed greatly to the overall success of the program.”

Robert Prettejohn – Cairns, QLD

“I took Yogi’s photo class with a bunch of friends and family of various different skill levels. Yogi has a lovely, gentle approach to teaching with no ego or B.S. Everyone in the course got something awesome out of it and it was a heap of fun playing with all his toys and gadgets. He was great at explaining complex stuff and made sure no one got left behind.”

Dave Mainwaring – Port Douglas, QLD

“Take a small disparate group of individuals, from a variety of geographical and workplace backgrounds; shake gently in a minibus, pour into a variety of magnificent tropical photo venues; add good food, company and accommodation, and you have the starting blocks for Yogi and Stella’s Masterclass in Nature Photography. Some essential didactic advice and suggestion smooths the way for the main focus on individual mentoring and hands on learning. The advantages of digital imaging in allowing trial…

Gresham Clapham – Cairns, QLD

“This was far and away the best in-the-field photo course I’ve done: dedicated, well prepared instructors and organisers with a great sense of humour whose approach showed real interest in us as individuals, and the group responded accordingly. I’d have no hesitation in recommending others to participate.”

Carol Hall – Ballarat, VIC

“I had the best time and learnt so much from both Jürgen and Stella… and the others! And visited a beautiful part of the world I had never been too… what a bonus! Thank you! This will go down in my memories as one of my best holidays EVER!!!”

Chris McKinnon – Tamworth, NSW

“This was more than a course. Not only did I learn a lot from an experienced, patient, knowledgeable tutor and guide, I had to stretch my limited knowledge and came away with a head and notebook full of tips, tricks and information. The course was well organised and run capably by Stella and Yogi, and the inter-action with the other group members ensured strong friendships were made. The willingness to share experiences and knowledge made for a very pleasant learning experience in an area full o…

Philip Michael – Gold Coast, QLD

“The method was Rogerian with a lot of personal responsibility for learning and largely apprentice mode of instruction. This method suits me. It’s the first face-to-face course I have done and Yogi was a true gentleman. I would do further courses without hesitation as it was an outstanding learning experience.”

Dennis Tannenbaum – Perth, WA

“What an incredible workshop! I learned so much about wildlife, camera equipment, techniques and postproduction. Yogi is a fantastic teacher and a remarkable human being. His soft spoken but expert coaching improved my photography immensely and this course was as inspirational as it was informative. I will forever have the memories and skills (and let’s not forget photos!) that I picked up during this workshop. Thanks so much for a truly amazing experience.”